It started with an unexpected call last week from Lynne Patton, a longtime Trump associate who oversees federal housing programs in New York.
Ms. Patton told a leader of a tenants' group at the New York City Housing Authority, the nation's largest, that she was interested in speaking with residents about conditions in the authority's buildings, which have long been in poor repair.
Four tenants soon assembled in front of a video camera and were interviewed for more than four hours by Ms. Patton herself. They were never told that their interviews would be edited into a two-minute video clip that would air on Thursday night at the Republican National Convention and be used to bash Mayor Bill de Blasio, three of the tenants said in interviews on Friday.
"I am not a Trump supporter," said one of the tenants, Claudia Perez. "I am not a supporter of his racist policies on immigration. I am a first-generation Honduran. It was my people he was sending back."
The episode represents another stark example of how President Trump has deployed government resources to further his political ambitions. Ms. Patton is head of the New York office of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and under the Hatch Act is barred from using her government position to engage in political activities.
More at the link:Three of the four tenants in the public housing video were interviewed on Friday by The New York Times. All three said they opposed President Trump and were misled about the purpose of the video.
In the video, the tenants raised concerns about conditions in the housing authority's buildings, attacking Mr. de Blasio's housing record. Ms. Perez, one of the tenants, said in an interview on Friday afternoon that she stood by her criticism of the authority but was furious about being tricked into appearing in the video.
Ms. Perez said she had been called last week by another tenant leader, Carmen Quiñones, who said Ms. Patton was with her at the Frederick Douglass Houses in Manhattan and wanted to talk to residents about the housing authority's performance.
Only after the questioning ended were the four tenants told that the interview was for the Republican Party, Ms. Perez said. But she said she was never told that it was for the convention.
Ms. Perez said she demanded to see the edited version of the clip, but no one ever showed it to her. She added that Ms. Quiñones called her minutes before the clip aired on Thursday night to say that it was about to be shown.
N.Y.C. Tenants Say They Were Tricked Into Appearing in R.N.C. Video (Published 2020)
“I am not a Trump supporter,” one of the tenants said, adding that she was furious that her interview with a government official was used for the convention.
www.nytimes.com